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Welcome - in particular all new readers. If you want to subscribe just log on to capeinfo.com. Click on newsletters on the left hand side and you will then find a simple sub form to complete. Reporters are archived on the capeinfo web site. Apart from the Reporter there is a large section devoted to the Riebeek Valley. Click here to have a look. Don't let PPC break the Riebeek Valley The period for comment on the EIA Report has been extended to March 17th. Don't forget to send your comments to Tamara North at Ninham Shand - Tamara.North@shands.co.za, PO Box 1347, Cape Town 8000, with a copy to the Suretha Van Rooyen at the Provincial Department of Environmental Affairs and Planning - suvrooye@pgwc.gov.za, PBX 9086, Cape Town 8000. It is vital that you do this. Meanwhile the Riebeek Valley Environmental Forum has been formed. Those attending the inaugural meeting represented a broad cross section of people living in the area including farmers, wine cellars, business people, tourism, concerned residents and those having environmental concerns. During the meeting a constitution was approved and a committee elected with Patrick Kane of Riebeek West as chairman. He may be contacted on 022 461 2296 or rocker@iafrica.com. The Forum's prime concern at this stage is to prevent PPC wrecking the Valley through their ill considered expansion plan. As we have said before - this could turn a beautiful, peaceful tourist destination into an industrial no go area. Addressing the meeting Michael Solomon stressed that it was not the intention to stop the project going ahead but it must be done in a way that is least disruptive both in the short and long term. This meant that issues concerning transport, visual impact and social disruption must be given top priority. He said that a tarred road from the R311 by PPC to the N7 just north of Malmesbury must be built. PPC claim that this will cost more than R100 million which sounds a lot but is insignificant compared with the total project cost of over R3 billion. This road will cater for much of the traffic which would other wise go through the villages. The factory must be built on the least visually offensive site. The new towers are likely to be over 130 metres high. If not carefully sited they will be a blot on the landscape over an area from Wellington in the south to Porterville and beyond in the North. The Forum has secured the services of an attorney who is reckoned by his peers to be the best specialist legal council available in this sort of situation. A "fighting fund" is being established to cover costs. Within the first 24 hours tens of thousands of Rands had been pledged. More money is needed. If you value your future in the Valley please get in touch with Patrick Kane. Incidentally the EIA report states that the present roads can handle the increased traffic generated by PPC (one truck per minute). Considering what is happening at the moment we seriously doubt this. Residents will know that the road over Bothmanskloof Pass has just been re-tarred and refurbished and the work was only completed in December. Already substantial repairs are being carried out and lengths of the road are being dug up... Additionally it has been bought to our attention that the new PPC factory will use 20 mega watts rather than the existing 5 mega watts of electricity. This will involve erecting a line of giant pylons (rather than the relatively small ones in use at the moment). These are not mentioned in the EIA. They would be further major blot on the landscape. However this may be academic. Eskom do not seem to have electricity. IOL Business Report has said that South Africa should be closed for new big industrial projects at least until 2013 when electricity supply is expected to improve. Bongani Nqwababa, Eskom's finance director, says that the parastatal has advised the government that it wanted South Africa marketed only from 2013 for both local and foreign projects. It was inappropriate to advertise South Africa as an investment destination with low-cost electricity. "You don't sell what you don't have." he added. Are we missing something? Do PPC plan to have on site electricity generation? We need to know! Rainfall 32mm fell in December which is way above average for the month but around the same as last year. Rainfall for 12 months ending November 2007 is 771mm. Farmers Report Van Niekerk Bruwer reports: The table grape harvest has started in force. At Christmas the grapes appeared to be of exceptional standard, but the summer rain has caused many sleepless nights. Some early varieties' berries burst after the rain we had in early January causing botrytis (rotting of the grapes) which means the grapes cannot be used for export. Farmers are still hopeful the later varieties will perform better than the earlier varieties. The price outlook looks favourable due to the weak Rand and strong Euro and farmers hope it would compensate for the botrytis damage. The wine grape harvest is expected to commence at the end of January. The wine grape outlook looks very promising since the summer rains caused a cooler ripening period and maybe even a heavier crop. Snippets Lizrien Chickens has opened beneath PEP in Riebeek West selling chicken in every form The SPCA held a successful sterilisation session in Riebeek West recently. It is hoped that another session will be run soon and that the monthly clinics will be resumed. The Olive Boutique is hosting the first, of what will become monthly special events, on the morning of January the 26th (the second is on February 23rd). Those wearing a hat are given free entry. Allan Barnard has taken over from Sue Burton as chairman of the tourist committee. Those of you who like to visit shopping malls occasionally might like to go to the one at Worcester. It is about the same distance as Cape Town but the drive is much more pleasant. There is a good selection of shops including Exclusive Books, Look & Listen, Game and so on. There is a cinema complex as well. Cricket on December 26th was cancelled. As residents of Riebeek Kasteel we are tempted to think that Riebeek West is scared of defending its 2006 win. In fact Dave Wickham reports that there appeared to be general lack of interest, Bev Gower was unable to do a commentary and there was comment that the venue used in 2006 was not ideal. But Dave has assured us that there will be a match in 2008. If you can help - do get in touch with him (Telephone: 082 898 9663). In particular he is looking for the use of a public address system and folk who are willing to do a commentary. Nets will start in October and notice of these will appear in the Reporter. The Riebeek Steel band played a couple of concerts at the prison recently. In a superb setting, just the other side of Nuwekloof Pass (on the right), polo matches are held about once a month. The next one is on January 26th at 5pm. The game is followed by a jazz concert which usually includes a solo by legendary drummer, Ginger Baker. There is a nominal entry fee which goes to charity. There are no facilities (apart from toilets!) so take your own picnics, cool drinks etc and spread yourself out on the grass. Relax. The atmosphere is just magic. The Riebeek Initiative was launched at an all day seminar at the Barn. Bev Gower, whose idea this project is, explained that this is a forum where architects and designers can pool and discuss information on the use of sustainable products when designing buildings. Also the use of products that are energy efficient. It is planned to set up a computer data base. Sixteen people attended the inaugural meeting which included six architects from Cape Town. Call Bev on 022 461 2156 for further information. Eating Out The Barn is closed until February 7th when an Italian inspired menu will be introduced. So perhaps we can look forward to Veal Milanese, minestrone, saltimbocca, cassata and so forth. Both the Barn and the Royal Hotel have special menus on St Valentines Day - February 14th. Advance booking is required. The Cook and Gardener is changing style as Mia takes over the pub and restaurant. The only gourmet pub in the Valley is promised ... Alex Brugger explains his arrival in the Riebeek Valley in the UK Sunday Telegraph. This is an edited version of an article which appeared in the Sunday Telegraph recently. South Africa remains a paradise for Britons wanting a holiday home with an intoxicating mix of the first and third worlds. Go to a city and you see new technology, luxury cars and world-class restaurants. But in the countryside far from Cape Town or Johannesburg, it's very different: stark open plains, dramatic waterfalls and unspoilt fishing villages are there to be discovered, and it is these areas that are attracting increasing numbers of British buyers. Take Alex and Claire Brugger from Epsom, Surrey. The last thing they wanted was a modern resort that was neatly manicured but not reflecting the "genuine" South Africa. "We never considered buying into a golf complex or nature reserve. We're not club people and don't want to mix only with Britons. We want a part of real South Africa," says Alex. The couple have built a two-bedroom house in the Riebeek Valley in the Western Cape, two hours from Cape Town on an array of main roads and dirt tracks. Reibeek is a gem, a 350-year-old rural community which has very few homes on its beautiful landscape of vineyards, wheat fields and lagoons set against the vast Elandsberg mountains. "I wanted to be off the beaten track and found Riebeek. We shop with locals and have farmers for neighbours. It's the real thing," says Alex, who spends 10 weeks a year in South Africa. The couple used local labour and had no problems finding materials in a country which has ambitious building programmes for local councils and private developers alike. This is the greenest and most fertile part of the Western Cape. Grapes, olives and vegetables cover the lush farmland, and property is a bargain - a 100-year-old, five-bedroom Victorian farmhouse costs around £400,000. A few retired Britons, Irish and Dutch live here during the hot months of November to April, then go home for the European summer - local estate agencies call them "the swallows" - but now they are joined by young British entrepreneurs who buy homes for visits all year round. "This area is the essence of South Africa. I've seen it every day for 30 years and it's always beautiful. The houses date back to Victorian times or have been built in that image. Farms are very large and dominate but some have homes on them, or there are plots you could build on," explains Gail Friedlander, an English woman living in Riebeek since the 1970s and working for Pam Golding Properties, an estate agent. LYNN WILLIAMS Jean Wright writes: Those who knew her will be greatly saddened to hear of the death of Lynn Williams. Many people in the Riebeek Valley will have met Lynn through her enthusiastic and tireless work on behalf of ill-treated and stray animals in this area. Lynn was a rough diamond streaked with gold; witty, amusing, intelligent and loyal, her sometimes prickly exterior concealing a very needy personality. She felt herself a misfit and was unable to accept how much she was appreciated for her many sterling qualities. She often said her Heaven would be full of animals with whom she was most comfortable, as animals accept people for what they are and are not fooled by fancy clothes and manners. May you be in your perfect Heaven now Lynn - you will leave a gap which could never be filled by anyone but Lynn Williams. We all hope you will truly rest in peace. Jean's Poetry Piece RUTHLESS She left me for another, just went without goodbyes, My heart is torn to pieces, and my soul in pain still cries. The devotion that I gave her in my every waking hour! I did for her just everything that was within my power. With attendance on her daily, I thought our love had flowered - But when I 'phoned her up she said she felt more than devoured! She shouted that I'm boring - I'm a thorough-going bore! and Added for good measure that my presence made her snore! Cattily, she mentioned that she didn't want a dog, And in bed the noise I made was rather like a hog. So now my blooming hopes are dead, she never will be mine - For ever I'll be Ruth-less, and most careful the next time. I'll treat the girls I meet again with macho stern contempt, Rough and tough from now on in; all consideration spent. If they say they love me and demand from me a token I'll never let on that I have a heart profoundly broken. Tender words I'll never speak or ever take them flowers, Even should they plead and cry enough to rival stormy showers. And if I meet that other guy, I'll give him such a punch - Then whistling happily I'll go and have a bit of lunch. Letters PPC I have followed with great interest the environmental impact studies conducted for the PPC Cement project at Riebeek West. I am sure that the Valley can do with an injection of expansion and that businesses may well benefit from the influx of people to the area. However, there are certain concerns that I, personally, have regarding the proposed new buildings. I am a person who is extremely interested in our environment, attracting tourists to our area, serious about the growth of businesses in the community, and the impact of various new business opportunities in our beloved Swartland, and I must say that I am extremely concerned about the new plant you propose to build in the Riebeek Valley. I want to see expansion, but not at the expense of the environment and the communities involved. I trust that these few concerns from a relative outsider will help PPC Cement to make the right decisions for everyone involved. Lindy du Toit. Malmesbury (Lindy asked us to stress that the above comments are made in her personal capacity and do not necessarily reflect the views of any organisation with which she is connected - ed) Riebeek West Stones For the third time in the nearly thirteen years that I have lived here, the stones that spell out Riebeek Wes, high up on the mountain above the village, have been revitalized. A very heartfelt thanks to George Käsner, our Riebeek West garden services guy for initiating this. George was inspired by a trip through Laingsburg, where their name is also "opie berg". Special thanks also to various sponsors: Riebeek Spar and Riebeek West Bottle Store for cold drinks; Pleasant Pheasant for sandwiches and burgers; Valley Paints for the brilliant white paint; Kaap Agri and Riebeek Valley Tourism for donations to pay the six hardworking school kids who laboured in the heat. Thanks guys! Sue Burton, Riebeek West Goedgedacht needs help! We are looking for a part time book keeper who knows all about Pastel and working up figures to trial balance here on our farm. And our cycle project at Esterhof could do with some help on what I would describe as a very part time basis! The project could do with help from some one with business and marketing experience. Please get in touch with me for further details. Anne Templeton goedgeda@iafrica.com 022 482 4466 Events
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